Ash pan drawer



Jan. 14, 1969 o. E. WINEGIARDNEVR ASH PANSDRAWER Filed Jan. 16, 1967 Dow/n0 E. Wmsehnmvsa ZMM Mm ll/ rms S United States Patent 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An ash pan drawer having a top wall which is open to receive ashes when the drawer is positioned under a fireplace grate and which can be closed by pulling a knob before the drawer is removed for emptying.

Background of the invention This invention relates to free-standing fireplaces or fireplaces where the hearth is spaced above the ground or floor so that ashes may fall through the grate and into a chamber or receptacle.

While fireplaces of various kinds have long been popular, collecting and disposing of ashes has always been a messy and disagreeable task. Normally, the ashes are swept onto a pan and then carried to a waste receptacle. In fireplaces having a hearth and grate spaced above the floor and a chamber beneath the hearth for receiving ashes as the fuel burns, the ashes must be swept from the chamber and into newspapers, baskets or the like. Spillage is inevitable about the fireplace site and not uncommon when the ashes are carried from the fireplace to a waste receptacle.

Typical prior art structures are disclosed in the Swanstrom et al. US. Patent No. 3,174,473 wherein ashes must be swept from the ash chamber, and the Taylor US. Patent No. 1,029,151 wherein ashes must be swept from the ash chamber.

With the modern, free-standing fireplaces, which are often located in the center of a room, gaining popularity, it has become increasingly important to provide a simple, economical and efficient means for removing ashes from the fireplace and disposing of them.

One of the more practical approaches of ash removal was disclosed in the Conger US. Patent No. 288, wherein a removable open drawer was positioned under the grating. The ashes were caught in the drawer. The drawer was then removed and carried to a suitable receptacle. The Conger device had one major disadvantage. The drawer was open and the inevitable spillage and problems encountered in drafts and the like want hand in hand with the device.

The prior art has failed to provide a satisfactory solution to cleanly and efficiently disposing of ashes and the like from fireplaces and more particularly from freestanding fireplaces. The present invention provides a solution to the above problem.

Summary The ash pan drawer of the present invention has a top wall which includes a fixed panel and a movable panel. When the drawer is positioned under the grating, the panels are separate thereby providing an opening so that ashes and the like can fall through the grating and into the pan. When the drawer is to be emptied, the movable panel is drawn toward the fixed panel until the opening is closed. The drawer may then be removed from the fireplace and carried to a receptacle without any danger of spilling ashes. I

Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present inven- 3,421,495 Patented Jan. 14, 1969 tion to provide an improved ash pan drawer which eliminates the aforementioned prior art problems.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a means for efiiciently collecting and disposing of ashes tflrom a fireplace wherein the grate is spaced above the oor.

Brief description of the drawing FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a free-standing fireplace including the ash pan drawer of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the supporting frame showing the drawer in its open position.

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the drawer in its closed position.

Description of the preferred embodiment The ash pan drawer, shown generally at 10 is adapted to be used with a free-standing fireplace shown generally at 11. The fireplace should have at least a back wall 12 and a hearth 13 connecting the back wall at its lowermost edge. The hearth has an opening 14 therein with a grate (not shown) constructed and arranged to lie over the opening to support fuel to be burned or food to be cooked. A flue 15 is disposed in spaced relation above the hearth and has a damper (not shown) operably disposed therein. The flue joins at least the back wall of the fireplace, although in the preferred embodiment, a conical fireplace having an open front portion is shown with the flue joining the top portion of the cone.

A frame 16 supports the fireplace and spaces the hearth and consequently the grating from the floor. The frame is adapted to slidably receive the drawer 10, as shown in FIG. 2. While the frame is shown as being supported by four legs 17, any number of suitable arrangements may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

The drawer has a bottom wall 20, first and second sidewalls 21, a front end wall 22, a rear end wall 23, a fixed top panel 24 and a movable top panel 25. A handle 26 is affixed to the outer surface of the front end wall to facilitate the removal and positioning of the drawer. When the fireplace is being used, the drawer is maintained in its open position as shown in FIG. 2. The opening between the fixed panel and the movable panel coincides with the opening in the hearth so that ashes falling through the grating are received in the drawer.

When the drawer is full, or whenever it becomes desirable to empty the drawer, knob 27 is pulled outwardly. The knob is aflixed to one end of a rod 28. The opposite end of rod 28 is afiixed to a substantially C-shaped member 29. The free ends 30 of member 29 are received through apertures 31 in the movable panel and bent or deformed so as to retain them in said apertures.

The sidewalls have a strip 34 which receives a grooved member 35 of the movable panel. When the knob is pulled outwardly, as shown in FIG. 3, the movable panel slides forwardly until the drawer is closed. The drawer is then removed from the fireplace via handle 26 and carried to a waste receptacle without danger of spilling ashes. The knob is then pushed in, opening the drawer so that the ashes can be emptied into the receptacle.

Thus, the present invention provides a means for collecting and disposing of ashes which obviates the need for scooping or sweeping ashes from the fireplace and which further eliminates the problems inherent in carrying the loose, powdery ashes from the fireplace to a waste receptacle.

While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, the same is to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive in character, it being understood that only the preferred embodiment has been shown and described and that all changes and modifications that come Within the spirit of the invention and the scope of the claims are also desired to be protected.

The invention claimed is:

1. Waste receiving means for use in a fireplace comprising a drawer having a floor, first and second sidewalls coupled to said floor, front and rear endwalls coupled to said floor and said sidewalls thereby forming said drawer, a top wall including a fixed panel and a movable panel, said fixed panel being coupled to said drawer adjacent said front end Wall, said sidewalls having means for slidably receiving said movable panel, said movable panel having means for slidably engaging said sidewall receiving means, handle means, means for opening and closing said top Wall including a rod, said front end wall having an aperture for receiving said rod therethrough, a first end of said rod extending outwardly from said front end wall, a knob affixed to said rod, a substantially C-shaped member engaging said movable panel, a second end of said rod coupled to said C-shaped member so that when said rod is pushed toward said front end wall and said knob is contacting said end wall said movable panel is spaced from said fixed panel thereby providing an opening to receive waste from the fireplace grate, and when said rod is pulled outwardly from said front end wall said movable panel is drawn over said opening thereby providing a closed container for transporting said Waste from said fireplace to a waste receptacle and obviating the need for scooping waste from a waste chamber.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said movable panel has a first aperture adjacent the front end thereof, and a second aperture spaced therefrom and adjacent the front end thereof, each of said apertures receiving a free end of said C-shaped member, said free ends being deformed so as to retain them within said apertures.

3. The combination of claim 2 further combined with a frame adapted to be under said fireplace and including means for slidably receiving said drawer, said movable panel contacting a rear Wall of said frame when said drawer is open.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 136,418 3/1873 Connelly 126-242 303,010 8/1884 Hofer et al. 126243 1,029,151 6/1912 Taylor 126120 1,887,041 11/1932 Remy 126--243 2,800,892 7/1957 Gontero 126-243 3,174,473 3/1965 Swanstrom et al. 1264 FOREIGN PATENTS 5,222 8/ 1878 Germany.

FREDERICK KETTERER, Primary Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R. 126-245 

